


it's not ridiculous at all

by deepfriedyoutiao



Category: ST 赤と白の搜查ファイル | ST Aka to Shiro no Sousa File
Genre: Akagi is smitten, Canon Compliant, Canon Era, Developing Relationship, Gen, M/M, The team is also here although for a bit, whether he wants to admit it or not
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-20
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-17 13:55:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,516
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29593809
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/deepfriedyoutiao/pseuds/deepfriedyoutiao
Summary: How Yurine got the Gakky-kun phone case in the first place.
Relationships: Akagi Samon/Yurine Tomohisa
Kudos: 1





	it's not ridiculous at all

**Author's Note:**

> When I rewatched episode 10, the scene where Yurine showed Saegusa the phone case he received from Akagi intrigued me a lot and thus the birth of this fic.

It's not a news that Akagi only let his guard down with the little Gakky-kun figurine he always had in the pocket of his coat. Yurine was well aware of this fact ever since he first learned of it from Saegusa. That figurine had been following Akagi around since forever it might as well be an official brand for the infamous leader of the Scientific Task Force, Akagi Samon. Even his profile picture for the messaging app was that strange-looking character.

Akagi might fight him if he knew this but Yurine did think that Gakky-kun was a rather strange-looking character. To say that it was cute didn't sound right to him, but it still had its own appeal nonetheless.

Anyway, Yurine was not really well-versed in this kind of stuff. This he would admit. The only characters he knew were the popular ones. Those that always popped up in the TV commercials and advertisements. The ones that were made into animation series for kids and vice versa. Although he had seen some other less known characters thanks to his friends from school and university years, Yurine never really paid any attention to this kind of hobby and little indulgence, simply because it didn't interest him that much.

But this Gakky-kun figurine Akagi dearly treasured somehow piqued Yurine's interest and so, he started searching up the character on internet to find out the origin of Gakky-kun. He spent the whole night at ST lab looking it up on various websites where he also managed to find other characters related to Gakky-kun which shared the same trait as the former, strange-looking yet appealing in their own unique ways.

He ended up sleeping at his desk afterwards, his arm being the pillow for his head.

When Yurine woke up it was already morning. The other members of ST were gathering around him, looking down at their sleeping Captain with arms folded across their chests (except for Yamabuki) and eyes full of mischief (especially Aoyama's). And instead of going on sleep mode, the laptop screen was displaying the friendly monster in various forms of merchandise.

Yurine hastily covered the screen with his hands and said in a hoarse voice, “I-It's not what you think it is. I'm just... I'm just curious, okay?”

The four of them quietly looked at Yurine, pretending as if they didn't know what the man was talking about.

“What is it?” Aoyama said after a moment of silence, head tilting to the side, feigning innocence. “Nobody said anything about anything.” She noted with satisfaction at the way Yurine reacted to her words. Aoyama stole another quick glance at the laptop screen before she patted Yurine's arm and told him to rise and shine, and wash his face too since he looked somewhat miserable at the moment, to which Yamabuki agreed.

Abashed, Yurine awkwardly announced his plan to have some breakfast before he hurriedly closed all the tabs on his internet browser and turned off the laptop, grabbed his coat and bag, and stormed out of the lab without turning back.

Aoyama laughed the moment Yurine disappeared from her vision. Yamabuki and Midori huffed out a small laugh while shaking their heads at their Captain's silly act. Kurosaki, on the other hand, merely stared at the entrance of the lab with a hint of smile on his otherwise stoic face.

“Oh? You're here too, Akagi-san? Well, that's rare,” commented Aoyama when she noticed their team leader sitting quietly in his office room.

Upon hearing her, the others shifted their gazes to the said office, looking at Akagi through the transparent glass as he busied himself with the computer.

“Rare indeed,” Midori agreed.

Yamabuki put his hands together and chanted something under his breath, perhaps praying for Akagi's well-being.

Akagi who had been there since who knew how long didn't respond, as expected. Seeing that she was being blatantly ignored by the man, Aoyama decided to mind her own business and promptly went to her desk. The rest soon followed suit.

***

Today was one of those days where nothing really happened and ST lab was perhaps in its most peaceful state ever. Without new case assigned from the higher ups, it was almost impossible for Yurine to keep the members of ST from freely leaving the lab. They really did treat the place as if it was their own home, much to his dismay. Both Kurosaki and Midori were long gone. Yamabuki stayed for a while to work part-time as the lab's janitor before he eventually headed back to the temple.

As for Akagi, well, Yurine had no doubt that the other man was already at his apartment right now. The words ‘I'm bored’ were written all over his face when he walked out of his office with an audible sigh and proceeded to restlessly pace around the lab while shooting glances at Yurine. When Yurine asked him if he had anything to say to or complain at him, Akagi quickly announced his plan to go back home and then left in a rush, leaving Yurine in a daze.

But what perplexed Yurine the most was Aoyama. Aoyama, who he suspected to be the first one to go home, was still here, much to his surprise, though she was all bundled up in a quilt and watching the latest installment of some online ghost videos. Well, the internet connection at this building was good. Yurine could attest to this. It was one of the main reasons why he often stayed at the lab instead of going back to his apartment even when his job was all done. Unlike his place, he could surf the department's internet without having to wait for the website page to load forever. Plus, it was free of charge too, in a way.

Yurine watched in silence as Aoyama shivered in delight. Her eyes were completely glued to the computer screen and once in a while she would scream in excitement whenever the alleged ghost appeared. She even invited Yurine to watch the show together with her, but he politely refused. As much as it intrigued him, Yurine still would like to have a peaceful sleep tonight.

He heard Aoyama laughing mockingly before the latter turned her attention back to the computer. Annoyed, Yurine sighed and sat down at his desk, focusing on the reports he had yet to finish.

It was already late when he was done with his work. Aoyama had long since disappeared, making Yurine the only person left in the ST lab at this hour. Yurine let out a long sigh and slumped in his chair, staring with distaste at the final report he had just finished typing and suffering through. His stomach growled with hunger as he packed his things and got ready to leave the quiet lab. He decided to stop by Saegusa's cafe for a quick dinner before he headed home.

“Akagi-san!” Yurine's face lit up with pleasure when he entered the cafe and spotted Akagi quietly sipping his coffee. He immediately approached the man and took a seat next to him, not caring the sidelong glance Akagi shot at him. Even though it was never really weird for Akagi to frequent the cafe, still Yurine was excited to be able to meet him at this moment. He ordered curry rice after the quick exchange of pleasantries with Saegusa who then nodded his understanding and excused himself to the kitchen with a warm smile.

“What are you doing here?” Akagi asked, sounding bored as usual.

“What am I doing here? To eat, of course! I haven't had dinner yet and I'm so hungry right now I could die,” Yurine replied. “That's right. Akagi-san, can you please not treat the lab like your own apartment? You can't just leave the place freely like that.” Before long, he began lecturing Akagi about work etiquette and how improper it was to just go back home even though there's no new case to work on. He also complained about how because of his and the other members' actions, he had to spend hours trying to cover the team when Director Matsudo brought up the issue earlier today.

Ikeda who was also there as per usual could only keep his mouth shut and listen in silence during their usual meeting. He awkwardly consoled Yurine on their way back to their offices and asked him to be more strict with those ST members so that this kind of issue didn't repeat itself in the future. Yurine nodded weakly in response.

Akagi who had been listening to Yurine's words with great disinterest quietly muttered “Annoying” and took another sip of his coffee. He sighed in relief when the curry rice Yurine ordered earlier finally arrived because by then the Captain's seemingly endless lecture and whining was forced to an end since his hand was busy stuffing the food into his mouth.

Saegusa poured some water for Yurine and gently pushed the glass towards him. “Yurine-kun is just worried about Akagi-kun and the team,” he said after a short pause.

Yurine almost sprayed the rice in his mouth onto the table as he expressed his agreement with the man. He then shot Akagi a glare when the later blurted out a “Gross” while grimacing at him. But as always, the glare only lasted a few seconds before his usual big smile returned.

There wasn't any customers other than Yurine and Akagi at this late hour. The only sound that could be heard in the cafe was Yurine's and Saegusa's voices as they chatted about things Akagi had no interest in. At times the clinging sound of the spoon and the plate filled in the tiny gap between their chattering and the brief quietness as Yurine finished his meal. Saegusa also managed to wipe clean all of the cups and glasses on the counter while talking with Yurine and now that he had no other job to busy himself with, Saegusa offered to refill Akagi's empty cup.

“It's okay. I still need to sleep tonight,” Akagi replied. Wrapping his fingers around the coffee cup, he found a small comfort in its residual warmth.

Saegusa beamed at Akagi and nodded his understanding. He took Yurine's empty plate instead and excused himself to the kitchen, leaving behind Akagi and Yurine at the front.

Yurine drank some more water from his glass before he turned to Akagi and studied the other man's face intently. For some unknown reason, Akagi had been glancing at him a lot today. He could still feel Akagi's eyes on him during his entire conversation with Saegusa earlier. Yurine had tried to ask Akagi if there's anything wrong before at the lab, but Akagi just brushed it off and then hurriedly disappeared from Yurine's sight.

Now that the opportunity had presented itself, Yurine was determined to fork out the answer from Akagi himself. “Akagi-san,” he began, eyes narrowed with curiosity. “You've been looking at me a lot today, before you left the lab of course. Is there anything in your mind that you wish to say to me?”

Akagi casted a cursory glance at Yurine as he floundered, not knowing quite what to say in response to that question. In the end, he merely said “No” before he stood up and promptly left the cafe.

“Wait, wait, wait. Where are you going? You haven't answered my question yet. Akagi-san!”

Soon, a soft thud of the door closing sounded and Akagi disappeared yet once again.

“What is it with him?” Yurine muttered under his breath with a frown.

***

For the past few days, Yurine had, on many occasions, caught Akagi stealing glances at him. When their eyes met, Akagi would turn away in an instant and when Yurine inquired him about it, he pretended as though no such thing had happened. Yurine wasn't sure if his intuition was right or wrong, but somehow he felt like Akagi was getting restless each time he looked at him. It was as if he had something to tell Yurine but decided against it out of perhaps fear or embarrassment. Now that he thought about it, Yurine also couldn't help but feel restless as well seeing Akagi like that.

It was night when Yurine finally had the chance to talk to Akagi concerning this unspoken issue between them. ST team had been busy with a new case lately and after a few days of trying to pin down the prime suspect and fathom out what could be the motive for the serial murder, they finally managed to solve the case and catch the culprit before another person became their victim. All that's left for them was to wrap it up with a well-written report which then would be handed over to Director Matsudo.

Akagi was about to leave the lab when Yurine called out his name and quickly took hold of his arm, effectively stopping him from stepping out of the place.

Akagi shot him an annoyed look. He tried to shake off Yurine's hands but failed. Yurine was practically hugging his arm and his face was dangerously close too it made Akagi feel somewhat nervous. So he put on his irritated face and let out an audible sigh to mask his nervousness. “What do you want, Cap? Let me go.”

“I won't,” said Yurine. "You still haven't answered my previous question yet."

“I told you already it's because of—”

“I'm not talking about the case.”

Akagi knew full well what question Yurine was implying at the moment. But still, he played dumb. “Huh? What are you talking about? Cap, if you want to talk, speak in human language. If not then let me go.”

Yurine heaved a sigh and rolled his eyes at Akagi. He finally released Akagi's arm and stood before the man, arms folding across his chest. “Akagi-san, do you have something to tell me?”

“Huh?”

“Don't play dumb with me, Akagi-san. You think I didn't notice how often you've been glancing at me these past days?” Yurine noted with curiosity at the way Akagi reacted to his words. “When I caught you red-handed you quickly looked away. When I asked if anything's wrong, you brushed it off and ignored me. Also, I might not have extraordinary sense of smell like Kurosaki-san, but I can still notice how restless you've been when you're around me. If I did something wrong to you, won't you tell me what was it so I can apologize and maybe fix it? It's not good if you just keep quiet like this. You're making me worry, Akagi-san.”

Akagi fell silent. He merely casted a cursory glance at Yurine who was waiting for his answer with a serious face. For some reason, his brain decided to shut down right at this instant. He couldn't come up with a decent reply.

Yurine's gaze softened on Akagi when he noticed how tensed the other man was. “Akagi-san, you're not hiding some big secret from me, are you?” he asked in a rather playful tone, leaning towards Akagi with his eyes narrowed.

“Huh? Big secret? Even if I have one, it's hundred years too early for you to know,” Akagi quickly said in his usual boastful manner.

“Then, what is it?”

Akagi stalled for a moment before he replied, “It's... It's your face.”

Yurine's brow furrowed. “My face?”

“That's right. Your face. Cap, haven't you realized how idiotic you look when you grin broadly at people? That plus your ridiculous curly hair, it makes you look even stupider than you normally are.”

Yurine was fuming. “Wait a sec. Akagi-san, what are you trying to say? What does my hair has anything to do with...with me looking silly? What does that even mean?”

“I mean what I said literally,” Akagi said. “For a mere public servant and tax thief like you, you look extremely ridiculous with that silly grin on your face and that curly hair on your head that it makes me want to puke. Please learn how to control your facial expression, Cap, or you're going to bring shame not only to yourself but to ST as well.”

“What did you say? _I bring shame to ST?_ Akagi-san, for the record, it's—”

“Yes, you do! Yes, you do. And because you look ridiculous, here, I'll give you something that suits your ridiculousness.” Akagi whipped something out of nowhere and pushed it onto Yurine's palm. He then shoved Yurine aside and soon strode out of the lab, his pace quickened with each step he took.

Yurine who almost fell down due to Akagi's strong force staggered on his feet as he tried to balance his footing. “Wait— Akagi-san? Akagi-san! My hair is not ridiculous! Akagi-san!”

Too late.

Akagi had already vanished from his vision. Sighing, Yurine looked down at the item Akagi gave to him a few seconds ago and frowned. It was a phone case with a full body design of Gakky-kun's character on a white background. “What is this?”

***

“Is something bothering you, Yurine-kun?” Saegusa asked, face full of concern. He placed down the cup of coffee in front of Yurine who had been scowling ever since he entered the cafe.

Yurine looked to the side. Akagi was not there. “Akagi-san didn't stop by today?”

Saegusa shifted his gaze to the spot where Akagi usually occupied and said, “Oh, he didn't today. Is there something wrong?”

“Not really.” Yurine sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. It was curly ever since he was a kid. There's no helping it. “It's just that he got on my nerves today. Did you know Saegusa-san, that a while ago he just told me I look stupid right to my face. He said that my smile looks silly and that my curly hair is ridiculous. Isn't he asking for a fight?”

A smile graced Saegusa's features as his gaze softened on Yurine.

“I'm honestly worried about him. He looked restless these past days and I want to help so I asked him if there's anything he want to say to me, a problem or something like that, but then, he insulted me and my hair? What was that supposed to mean?”

Looking at how dispirited Yurine was due to Akagi's insult, the young man reminded him of a poor stray dog. Saegusa desperately tried to suppress his laughter for fear of offending Yurine when he didn't mean to. “Akagi-kun doesn't really mean what he said to you about your smile and your hair,” he said in his usual composed manner. “You know how fragile his heart is. Him talking that way... It's sort of like his defense mechanism.”

A sigh escaped Yurine's mouth. “Even if that's the case, it's still not nice for him to speak that way. Akagi-san really needs to watch what he says to people or else he's gonna be in trouble in the future if he ends up offending someone big and of high position.”

“And that's where you come in,” said Saegusa with a smile.

Yurine exchanged a brief look with Saegusa-san and heaved another sigh. “Why do I feel more like a babysitter than ST chief?” he complained. When Saegusa laughed at that, Yurine looked at the man as if he'd just betrayed him, to which had Saegusa laughing even more.

But Saegusa was right about Akagi. That man was not really good with words. He remembered that one time when he went to Akagi's apartment to lecture him about how everyone else was also in pain and suffering. Akagi told him he wanted to ‘see’ if Yurine was being honest when he suddenly pulled Yurine into a hug instead of telling him the truth, that he was indeed deeply touched with Yurine's words that came right from the bottom of his heart. But because he couldn't find the convenient excuse to do that, Akagi ended up blurting out scientific stuff about how the muscle tensed when one spoke earnestly and whatnot.

“I'll forgive him then,” he said and beamed at Saegusa when the latter brought him a cup of coffee he ordered earlier. Sipping on the hot beverage, a thought then crossed Yurine's mind. “That's right. Before I forget, if he didn't mean what he said about me always looking like a fool, what was he trying to say to me then?”

Saegusa hummed for a moment before he replied, “Why don't you figure it out yourself?”

Yurine was heading back to his place, mind preoccupied with trying to figure out what could Akagi possibly mean by his insult, when he remembered the phone case the other gave him earlier. Pausing his steps for a second, Yurine took it out of his bag and proceeded to observe the phone case in his hand, turning it over and over until he's satisfied. Without a doubt, it was a perfect fit for his phone model. Yurine recalled Saegusa's words about Akagi and before long, the corners of his lips twitched upward into a fond smile.

He let his gaze rest a little longer on Gakky-kun. “Really, it's not ridiculous at all.”


End file.
